The present invention relates generally to a fluid dispenser, and more particularly to a cost-effective dispenser assembly that is fully compatible with high-speed in-line filling apparatuses, capable of dispensing predetermined amounts of fluid materials, and has few components to assemble.
Various types of dispensers for fluids are well known in the art. Dispensers typically comprise a cartridge for holding the fluid material, as well as a spray, pump, or plunger to dispense the fluid material out of the cartridge. Some dispensers have a spray pump attached to a pump line that runs through a cartridge containing fluid material, such as perfume. When the user depresses the spray pump, fluid material flows through the line to the spray, and then onto the desired medium. Other dispensers, such as those used for caulking, have a cartridge filled with caulk, and a trigger mechanism which causes a plunger in the cartridge to push the caulk out of the cartridge.
The shortcomings associated with these prior art dispensers concern their manufacture and assembly. Known dispensers typically require several pieces that must be manufactured and then assembled together. Some of the pieces, such as a separate applicator tip, are relatively small in size and can prove difficult to assemble. Known dispensers often have parts that need to be screwed together, or require additional adhesives or the like to secure the various components of the dispenser together. The configuration of known dispensers therefore requires extraneous parts and steps to complete the dispenser assembly process, which, in turn, drives up the costs for the manufacturer. These drawbacks are further compounded by the problems associated with filling known dispensers with fluid materials.
Once a dispenser has been manufactured, dispenser manufacturers typically solicit their dispensers to companies desiring to sell fluid products. For example, a cosmetic company may wish to purchase a dispenser designed to dispense a fluid lipstick, lotion, or the like. After purchasing the empty dispensers from a dispenser manufacturer, the cosmetic company will then proceed to fill the dispensers with its own product using a filling apparatus and process. There are many problems, however, associated with the purchase and subsequent filling of known dispensers by a purchasing company.
It is not cost-effective to fill known dispensers with fluid product using standard high-speed filling apparatuses and processes. Such dispensers often vary in shape and size and are not readily adaptable to preexisting high speed filling machines utilized by a particular company. For example, the shape of the dispenser body may not be compatible with the parts of the preexisting filling machine used to hold the dispenser during the filling process, or the opening of the cartridge may not be large enough (or even too small) to receive the nozzle of the filling apparatus that dispenses the fluid material from the filling apparatus to the cartridge. To remedy these problems, the cosmetic company is therefore forced to purchase new filling machines, and/or adapters, such as funnels, or custom made holders for the dispenser, commonly referred to as pucks, to make pre-existing filling machines and dispensers compatible with one another. In some situations, it is too costly to adapt a preexisting filling machine to fit a particular dispenser, which results in the inability to use such a dispenser in a high speed filling process, or similar type of filling process. This often forces the cosmetic company to either select an alternative dispenser, or to use an alternative slower process. Each of these problems is a costly venture for a purchasing company, who then passes the additional cost on to the consumer.
There are also additional costs associated with assembling the dispenser once the dispenser has been filled with the desired fluid material. In the filling process, typically a separate cartridge must first be filled by the filling apparatus, and then inserted into the dispensing device. Thereafter, the dispenser must be completely assembled and sealed. This task proves to be especially cumbersome when the dispenser has several components that need to be assembled after the filling process is completed. The added steps and time needed to assemble and fill such dispensers, slows down the filling process and drives up the filling costs. It also compromises the quality and integrity of the fluid material sitting in the dispenser because it leaves the fluid materials subject to contamination by dust, air, etc., until the dispenser is sealed.
These problems are evident in U.S. Application No. 2003/0123921 to Abbas (“Abbas”), which is directed toward an instrument preferably for applying a fluid material of low viscosity to a surface. FIG. 19 discloses a fluid dispenser that comprises a cartridge of fluid, a holder, an applicator tip, a pump and pump housing, and a retaining ring for holding the pump housing within the holder. Force applied to the cartridge causes fluid in the cartridge to flow from the pump to the holder, and the applicator tip. FIG. 23 of Abbas discloses a toothbrush dispenser preferably for dispensing a fluid of low viscosity, such as a liquid cleaner, mouthwash or perfume, onto teeth. The toothbrush dispenser comprises a cartridge of liquid cleaner having a pump, an outer holder for the cartridge, an applicator tip or toothbrush head attached to the holder, and a feeder line from the cartridge to the applicator tip. FIG. 27 shows a configuration similar to FIG. 23, the primary differences being that the applicator tip is a pad, and that instead of a feeder line from the inner cartridge to the applicator tip, there is an inking region that collects fluid material dispensed from the cartridge, and then dispenses the fluid material to the applicator tip. In both FIGS. 23 and 27, force applied to the cartridge causes fluid material from the cartridge to flow into either the feeder line or inking region, and then to the applicator tip. Despite the seemingly relative simplicity of these embodiments, there are still costly drawbacks associated with the manufacture of the Abbas dispensers, and the subsequent filling of the Abbas dispensers with fluid materials.
The Abbas dispenser is comprised of several parts that require assembly. The applicator tip must be inserted and secured onto the holder, an inner cartridge containing fluid material is inserted into the holder, a retaining ring must also be inserted into the holder to contain the inner cartridge within the holder (or the inner cartridge must be screwed into the holder), a pump mechanism must be attached to the cartridge, and then the cartridge must be sealed with a cap.
Prior to installation of the cartridge, the cartridge must first be filled with fluid material. Abbas is designed so that the cartridge is filled with fluid material and then temporarily sealed. The cartridge is then placed into the holder in its sealed form, and later punctured by the tip of the pump when it is desired to permit the free flow of fluid material into the applicator. This design is believed to prevent the pre-assembly of the cartridge into the holder when the cartridge is provided to a filling manufacturer because pre-assembly might cause premature puncturing of the cartridge. Moreover, the design of the cartridge typically requires additional screwing or the use of adhesives or the like to secure the cartridge within the holder. In this regard, it is believed that the Abbas dispenser cannot be sent to a filling manufacturer in a preassembled form, filled, and then simply sealed. Thus, the Abbas dispenser requires the steps of filling the cartridge, sealing the cartridge, and only then installing and securing the cartridge within the holder. The added step in the Abbas dispenser assembly process exemplifies the problems associated with the Abbas dispenser and prior art dispensers.
It is therefore beneficial to provide a dispenser assembly, such as those embodiments disclosed by the present invention, that is cheaper to manufacture, easy to assemble, maintains the integrity of the fluid material in the dispenser, and is compatible with pre-existing high speed filling machines.